Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1887-06-24
The Gospel of SOrreI.

DIR. Hoskins of the Rural Vermonter, af-
ter paying us a compliment which is appre-
ciated, says, in reference to a selected arti-
Gle on destroying sorrel, which appeared in
these columns:
owe believe there is not another agricul-
tural topic about which so much nonsense
has been written, as this little red headed
weed. The article in question is not all
wrong. 1t is sound enough when it says
IF we can, however, make the soil rich
enough to get "A good clover catch, the
greatest difficulty in subduing sorrel will be
overcome. This is very true. If the land
is made rich enough to bear any strong,
close growing plant, that will cover or well
shade the soil, sorrel must disappear There
is hardly n weaker plant in existence than
sorrel, and he is weak farmer, indeed,
who cannot destroy it, Only last season
we plowed up piece solid full of sorrel,
and planted it to early sweet corn. 1t was
thoroughly cultivated, and this season there
is hardly a spear of sorrel in it, and it will
he planted to squashes.
"Ihe writer of the article in question
claims clover as a special sorrel destroyer
There is, in fact no such thing Most light
soils in New England are thoroughly and
enduringly seeded with sorrel This is a
beneticent dispensation of Providence, to
secure that all such soils, when neglected,
shall he preserved from washing, and slow
ly enriched by the growth of this humble,
but pertinacious little benefactor Most
sandy soils run out from lack of available
potash. There is potash enough there,
generally, but it is locked up in pretty insol-
uble minerals, Sorrel, with its leaves,
draws from the air the materials to make
an acid, which its roots use effectively to
corrode the potash minerals, and make the
potash available to succeeding vegetation.
In this way, sorrel is a true ameiorating
crop. The substance which gives to sorrel
leaves their sour taste, is oxalate of potash,
combination of oxalic acid, made by the
plant itself from the carbon, oxygen and
hydrogen of the atmosphere, with the pot
ash of the land. The presence of sorrel
shows that there is potash in the soil but
n free growth of sorrel, to the exclusion of
stronger plants, shows that potash available
to the stronger plants is lacking, and only
plant provided by nature with the means
of dissolving potash minerals-chiehy field
spar-can get hold of it,
Hundreds CT times have agricultural
papers told their readers that lime and pot
ash applied to the land will exterminate
sorrel, by 'neutralizng the acid. Yet any
farmer who goes around with his eyes open,
must have seen sorrel growing most vigor-
ously ON our sweetest land, ON new burns,
and around half-consumed stumps, where
the ground must have been full of potash
from ashes. As to lime, all our New Eng
land upland soils have plenty of lime in
them, and no dry uplands of this section
can be made better by the use of lime as a
fertilizer. Yet the article quoted says:
"'On sandy soils clover generally fails
first, from lack of available mineral plant
food, usually lime or potash. Clover is one
OF the greatest consumers of lime among
farm crops, and this explains the marvellous
elect OF sulphate of lime or land plaster in
making clover catch. On heavy soil a
dressing of 100 pounds of gypsum per
acre rarely fails TO bring good clover. When
it fails ON sandy soil it is usually owing to
lack of available potash and mixture of
gypsum and either ashes or potash salts will
usually bring the land into condition for
growing clover again. Stable manure may
also he necessary for on sandy soil an in
crease of vegetable matter of any kind
can never come amiss. As soon as the Dos
sibility of growing clover is established, the
victory over sorrel is practically won
How much lime is there in 100 pounds
of gypsum Pure gypsum contains 32l
per cent Of lime Nova Scotia land plaster,
about 30 per cent. What practical farmer
can believe that the heavy growth of clover
which is sometimes produced by the appli-
cation of 100 pounds of plaster TO an acre
is due 10 the 30 pounds of lime in it. when
the same soil already can hardly have less
than ton of lime in its soil within six
inches of the top, and generally, in New
England, much more The action Of plas
ter has been held 70 be a great mystery ;
but when We remember that nearly one
half its weight is sulphuric acid, one of the
most powerful chemical agents known and
one Of the most effective in releasing plant
food from It's inert combinations in the soil,
who eau doubt that his is the cause of the
remarkable effect which it often produces :